Bakery, ConfeCtionery, toBaCCo Workers and Grain

Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union
November /
December 2008
Volume 10
Number 6
the PRESIDENT’s MESSAGE
Hope in a Time of Crisis
“America, we have come so far…This is our moment. This is our time—to put
our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore
prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream…”
A
All of our hard work has paid off! On November 4, the
American people elected a new president and demanded
a completely new direction for our nation. We elected a
president all Americans can be proud of and who already
enjoys the respect and admiration of world leaders and
everyday people around the globe.
Most importantly, we have elected a president who
offers America’s working people, and all of our citizens,
hope at a time of profound economic and social crisis.
When the BCTGM endorsed Barack Obama in June,
we did so because we believe he possesses the strength,
vision, character and compassion to lead our nation during
deeply troubled times.
That is why the BCTGM did our part, and more, to
elect Barack Obama. At every level of our Union, from
International Headquarters to the shop floors, we engaged
in the greatest effort the BCTGM has ever undertaken in
the political arena.
Time and again, throughout the longest campaign in
American history, Barack Obama validated our confidence
in him by displaying those very characteristics that led us
to endorse him. I have no doubt he will do so during the
course of his presidency.
Since the election, President-elect Obama hasn’t
taken a day off. He has been hard at work putting
together an Administration that will effectively carry
out the overwhelming mandate from the American
people—to take bold, decisive action to deal with the
worst economic conditions since the Great Depression and
restore America’s reputation for principled leadership and
forthrightness around the world.
Solving the economic crisis at home will be a daunting
task. We have the highest unemployment rate in nearly 15
years, with companies laying off more people every week.
Employers in every industry (including cereal, cookies
and crackers, tobacco, chocolate and candy) continue to
outsource jobs to low-wage countries while at the same
time foolishly expecting the economy to grow.
The pillars of our economy—manufacturing, banking,
finance and investment and health care—are in shambles;
wrecked by a governing philosophy for the last eight years
that left corporate greed unchecked.
Restoring economic growth and prosperity begins with
rebuilding the middle class which has been battered for
nearly a decade. President-elect Obama understands, as we
do, that the surest and quickest way to restore the middle
class is to support workers’ legitimate right to organize and
form a union free of employer intimidation and harassment.
He has made a commitment to sign into law the
Employee Free Choice Act, which will return this
fundamental right to millions of American workers.
2
—President-elect Barack Obama, November 4, 2008
Once workers no longer have to fear employer
retaliation, we know that they will sign union authorization
cards in droves.
Once the Employee Free Choice Act is in place, we will
see an historic surge in union membership and collective
bargaining agreements across the economy and across the
country. As a result, workers’ purchasing power will be
restored, the economy will grow and families can prosper
once again.
I am confident that over the next several months,
the American people will come to appreciate the stark
differences between a president who represents only
corporate interests and a president who represents the
interests of all Americans, worker and employer alike.
As President-elect Obama has cautioned, digging out
of this massive economic hole will be extremely difficult
and prosperity will not come overnight.
But, with the inspired leadership and sound judgment
of President Obama and his team, a new Congress ready to
cast aside petty bickering and get down to the business of
fixing this economy and the resiliency and patriotism of the
American people, brighter days are most certainly ahead
for the country we love.
This is a true blessing for the holiday season!
Frank Hurt
BCTGM International President
Official Publication of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco
Workers and Grain Millers International Union
10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, Maryland 20895-3961
(301) 933-8600
www.bctgm.org
Frank Hurt, Editor
Corrina A. Christensen, Assistant Editor
BCTGM General Executive Board
President Frank Hurt • Secretary-Treasurer David B. Durkee
Executive Vice President Joseph Thibodeau • Vice Presidents
Steve Bertelli • Anthony L. Johnson • Sean Kelly
Micheal T. Konesko • Arthur Montminy
Robert Oakley • Randy Roark
BCTGM General Executive Board Members
Joyce Alston • Edward Burpo • Johnny Jackson
Paul LaBuda • Richard Lewis • Narcisco Martas
Danny Murphy • Vester Newsome
Tony Pegram • Ron Piercey • Donna Scarano
Brad Schmidt • Doyle Townson
BCTGM News (ISSN 1525-4860) is published bi-monthly by the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain
Millers International Union, 10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3961. Periodicals postage paid at
Kensington, MD and at additional mailing offices. Subscription to new members only. Postmaster: Send address
changes to BCTGM News, 10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3961.
BCTGM News
Dannon Workers
Ratify First Contract
J
Just less than two years ago, nonunion workers at the largest yogurt
manufacturing facility in the U.S.
in Minster, Ohio, were tired of
working in a plant where they were
not treated with dignity, justice
or respect. So they contacted the
BCTGM Organizing Department.
One year later, after an historic
organizing drive involving BCTGM
allies worldwide, these same
workers voted overwhelmingly to
join BCTGM Local 19 (Cleveland).
The workers hard work and
dramatically improve the members’
health insurance coverage. In
addition, the new contract also
includes a buy-out provision for
senior workers, and extensive
military leave benefits.
However, according to one
new member, the most important
change to celebrate is the fact
that Dannon workers in Ohio are
now covered by a legally binding
contract, protected by federal law.
According to BCTGM
International President Frank Hurt,
embers of the Dannon negotiating committee
M
make final preparations before calling the
ratification meeting to order.
the new contract is the culmination
of a comprehensive organizing
strategy that included extensive
work in the Ohio community,
as well as support from allies
overseas. “This was a global
struggle, one that included our
brothers and sisters in Europe and
Asia,” said Hurt.
The Dannon Company is
owned by the French food giant,
Groupe Danone, which has
unionized facilities throughout
the world. The workers in Ohio
received far-reaching support
from Danone’s unionized workers
during the initial organizing drive.
The Local 19 bargaining
committee was assisted by
International Representative John
Price.
embers of the Dannon negotiating
M
committee included Jimmy Long, Scott
Barga, James Walterbush, Greg Meir, Bob
Steinke, Bob Hall and Greg Rindler. Also
pictured are stewards David Heuing and
Derek Regula.
solidarity has paid off with a first
collective bargaining agreement.
In October, more than 250
workers at Dannon Company’s
Minster facility ratified a five-year
agreement. The pact contains
standard contract provisions such
as a grievance procedure, seniority
rights, job bidding and vacations,
along with annual wage increases,
and inclusion in the Local 19
Health & Welfare Plan which will
November/December 2008
The Dannon workers review their first contract before voting for ratification of the agreement.
www.bctgm.org
3
d
eEnjoy aHoliday
BCTGM-Made
Season
f
Delight your friends and loved ones with holiday treats made by hard-working BCTGM members!
Listed here is a sampling of the union-contracted companies that produce seasonal specialties.
Annabelle Candy Company
Hershey Foods Corp.
Nestle Chocolate
Holiday seasonal specialties and bag
candy including union-made candies
like Rocky Road, Abba Zaba, Look,
Big Hunk and U-No.
BCTGM Local 125 (San Leandro, Calif.)
Assorted holiday candy,
lollipops, molded hollow
and solid foil wrapped
chocolate, holiday
novelties and tins
filled with
Hersheybrand
chocolates.
BCTGM Local 464 (Hershey, Pa.)
Holiday hard candy, molded solid
chocolate, tins and festive packages
filled with Nestle Treasurers, Laffy Taffy,
Flips Pretzels, Kathryn Beich specialty
candy, Baby Ruth, Butterfinger, BB’s and
Pearson’s Nips.
BCTGM Local 1 (Chicago) and Local 342
(Bloomington, Ill.)
Brown & Haley
Holiday gift boxes,
baskets, tins
and packages
filled with the
company’s
renowned Almond
Roca, Cashew
Roca, Mocha
Roca, Sugar Free
Almond Roca and
Candy Cane Roca.
BCTGM Local 9 (Seattle)
Jelly Belly Candy Company
Holiday gift boxes, tins, packs; Christmas
tree taffy, gums, jellies and other seasonal
novelties under the Jelly Belly brand.
BCTGM Local 125 (San Leandro, Calif.)
Just Born, Inc.
Concord Confections, Inc.
Holiday Marshmallow Peeps in tree and
snowman designs.
BCTGM Local 6 (Philadelphia)
Double Bubble Bubble gum and
gumballs in festive packages.
BCTGM Local 264 (Toronto, Ontario)
New England Confectionery
Company (NECCO)
Dare Foods Limited
Holiday varieties of gums, jellies,
hard candy and gift tubs including
festive bags with “To/From” gift tags.
BCTGM Local 264 (Toronto, Ontario)
Ghiradelli Chocolate Company
Holiday chocolate
gift baskets,
tins, boxes and
packs filled with
Ghirardelli brand
chocolate.
BCTGM Local 125
(San Leandro,
Calif.)
4
Holiday tins and
bags filled with
BCTGM-made
treats including:
NECCO Wafers,
Clark bar, Sky Bar,
Candy Cupboard
Chocolates,
Masterpiece
Chocolates,
Wrapped Foil Mints, Mary Jane Bags,
Peanut Butter Kisses, Haviland Thin Mints,
Chocolate Covered Peanuts, Raisins and
Bridge Mix, Chocolate Peanut Clusters,
Chocolate Nonpareils, Mighty Malts Malted
Milk Balls, and more.
BCTGM Local 348 (Framingham, Mass.)
Pearson’s Candy Company
Holiday tins, bagged and chocolate mints
including The Nut Goodie Bar, Salted Nut
Roll, Pearson’s Mint Patties, and Flurries.
BCTGM Local 22 (Twin Cities, Minn.)
Sconza Candy Company
Red, White & Green Chocolate Jordanetts,
Christmas Bell Jellies and Rings,
Reindeer Corn, Red, White & Green
Boston Baked Beans, Sprinkled
Christmas Tree Pretzels.
BCTGM Local 125 (San Leandro, Calif.)
See’s Candies
Holiday tins, baskets, boxes with
hard, soft and nut chocolate candies,
peppermint twists, fudge and foil
chocolate.
BCTGM Local 125 (San Leandro, Calif.)
Tootsie Roll Industries, Inc.
Tootsie Roll brand candies
BCTGM Local 1 (Chicago)
BCTGM News
SHop Union &
North
American-made
for the holidays
Everyone is looking for unique items to give this Holiday Season, and there are few
things as thoughtful to give the union member on your list than a union-made,
North American-made gift. All of the below listed gift ideas are featured on ShopUnionMade.org,
a website endorsed by the Union Label & Service Trades Department of the AFL-CIO.
Justice Clothing: The Race
to the Bottom Ends Here
Justice Clothing’s mission is to support
democratic principles, workers’ rights
and economic sustainability through
the sale and distribution of goods
manufactured by workers protected by
collective bargaining agreements.
USA Coffee Company
Only American workers and American
jobs are involved when you buy any of
the many types of coffee from the USA
Coffee Company, which grows all of its
coffee in Hawaii. From the growers and
pickers and packers and shippers, to
the freight and delivery and packaging
and materials, the USA Coffee Company
100 percent American. And since the
workers are union employees, you can
be sure they are well-represented and
their concerns for safety and working
conditions are addressed.
www.usacoffeecompany.com
Justice Clothing believes that workers
have a right to earn a living free of
the conditions that permeate many
workplaces, including: unpaid or
underpaid labor, sexual harassment,
physical and psychological abuse,
conditions dangerous to the worker’s
safety and health, coercion, threats
of reprisal for exercising the rights
guaranteed by the United Nations
Convention on Human Rights, and
threats of reprisal based upon workers’
demands that the standards outlined
by the International Labor Organization
be met.
Northland Poster Collection
Visit Northland Poster Collective
for hundreds of ready and custom
organizing products and materials
celebrating Labor’s culture and history
and social justice.
“The posters, buttons, bumper stickers,
and everything else we create are about
hope. Hope is what makes change
possible; change is what makes hope
possible. You can count on us to
find the words and images that will
demonstrate that even the toughest
challenges can be faced. Our task as
artists, organizers, and educators is
not to pretend that there is hope but to
find it and make it visible.”
www.northlandposter.com
Justice Clothing purchases goods from
factories located in the United States
and Canada.
“If you don’t mind buying clothing
made by slaves, children, indentured
servants, or workers who are paid
pennies a day, we are not your kind
of store.”
www.justice clothing.com
November/December 2008
www.bctgm.org
5
Voters Reject Corporate Lies
About Employee Free Choice
V
oters last November 4 soundly
rejected the misleading antiunion corporate campaign
opposing the Employee Free Choice
Act and overwhelmingly backed
candidates who support working
families.
A poll by Peter D. Hart Research
Associates commissioned by the
workers’ rights advocacy group
American Rights at Work shows
that anti-union advertising was
among the least important factors in
determining voters’ choices for U.S.
Senate and that they continue to
support making it easier for workers
to join unions.
“No matter how hard corporate
interests tried to mislead voters,
it just didn’t work. State by state,
millions were spent, but the fact
remains, the Employee Free Choice
Act never became the wedge issue
corporate interests sought,” said
American Rights at Work Chair
David Bonior.
Six newly-elected senators
expressed strong support for the
bill, despite the millions of dollars
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
and the business community spent
to try and defeat them. The new
senators—Rep. Mark Udall of
Colorado, Jeanne Shaheen of New
Hampshire, Rep. Tom Udall of
New Mexico, Kay Hagan of North
Carolina, Mark Warner of Virginia
6
and Jeff Merkley of Oregon—could
play a key role in passing the
legislation.
The bill did not come to the
Senate floor last year after senators
failed by nine votes to invoke
cloture. The atmosphere also is
different at the White House. While
President Bush had promised to
veto the bill, President-elect Barack
Obama co-sponsored the bill in the
Senate and has said he will work to
pass the bill once he takes office.
Here are the main findings of
the poll:
early two-thirds (60 percent)
N
of voters believe it is important
to pass the Employee Free
Choice Act, and nearly one-third
(31 percent) of voters strongly
believe it should be a priority for
Congress.
hen told about proposed
W
legislation in Congress that
would “make it easier for workers
to form unions by allowing
employees to be represented by
a union when a majority of their
co-workers sign cards saying
they want to join that union,”
voters favor the Employee Free
Choice Act by nearly two to one
(55 percent favor; 28 percent
oppose).
oters “are more than twice as
V
likely to say big corporations
having too much power (50
percent) create a bigger problem
for people like them than big
labor unions having too much
power (23 percent).”
Overall, 55 percent of voters in
these states say they approve
of labor unions, compared with
just 27 percent who say they
disapprove.
“We have only seen the
beginning of the fight to restore
workers’ rights in this country as
we can expect more sound and
fury from opponents of this bill.
But voters have clearly spoken.
In our current economic climate,
the American public is hungry for
measures to strengthen the middle
class, and our new Congress should
heed this call and make it a priority
to pass the Employee Free Choice
Act,” concludes Bonior.
Workers are supporting the
Employee Free Choice Act because
it gives working people the freedom
to make their own decision about
whether and how to form a union.
Working people are struggling to
make ends meet and the Employee
Free Choice Act will allow more
people to bargain for better wages
and working conditions—which
in turn helps rebuild our middle
class and create an economy that
works for all.
BCTGM News
It’s Time to
Restore Workers’ Freedom
to Form Unions
America’s working people are struggling to
make ends meet these days and our middle
class is disappearing. The best opportunity
working people have to get ahead economically
is by uniting to bargain with their employers for
better wages and benefits. Recent research has
shown that some 60 million U.S. workers would
join a union if they could.
But the current system for forming
unions and bargaining is broken. Every day,
corporations deny workers the freedom to
decide for themselves whether to form unions
to bargain for a better life. They routinely
intimidate, harass, coerce and even fire
workers who try to form unions and bargain for
economic well-being.
s
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The Employee Free Choice Act (H.R. 800,
S. 1041), supported by a bipartisan coalition
in Congress, would level the playing field for
workers and employers and help rebuild
America’s middle class. It would restore workers’
freedom to choose a union by:
• Establishing stronger penalties for violation
of employee rights when workers seek
to form a union and during first-contract
negotiations.
• Providing mediation and arbitration for firstcontract disputes.
• Allowing employees to form unions
by signing cards authorizing union
representation.
Join the
Million Member
Mobilization
Sign the Million Member Mobilization
for the Employee Free Choice Act
and add your voice to this growing
movement.
Help us deliver one million
signatures to our new President
and Congress in 2009!
Sign the Petition: www.freechoiceact.org/bctgm
November/December 2008
www.bctgm.org
7
Union Voters Help Drive
(Washington D.C., November 5)—Union voters
played an important role in President-elect Obama’s
historic victory, delivering a critical bloc of support
in swing states that helped propel Obama and other
working family candidates to big wins, election-night
polling released by the AFL-CIO shows.
Calling the victory in the presidential race and
the expansion of majorities in the House and Senate a
working families’ mandate for broad-based economic
change, BCTGM International President Frank Hurt
joined with other AFL-CIO leaders in a promise to
continue the large-scale mobilization to push through
broad economic reform.
“The overwhelming victory of President-elect
Barack Obama and the expanded Democratic
majorities in the U.S. House and Senate mean a sea
change has taken place in the American political
process,” BCTGM International President Frank Hurt
said. “It represents the beginning of a leveling of the
field for working men and women in this country after
eight years of devastating corporate control of our
nation’s political and legislative process. Led by a
candidate with an uncommon ability to inspire hope,
we reclaimed our country from those who are serving
corporate interests and the privileged at the expense of
everyone else,” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said.
Thousands of BCTGM members mobilized to
support Obama. Local union members in Virginia,
Nevada, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Colorado, Indiana,
Minnesota, Kentucky, New Mexico, Illinois, Georgia,
California, Oregon, Maine, and Mississippi spent
countless nights and weekends knocking on doors,
leafleting workplaces and phone banking.
The 2008 campaign was the largest, broadest
and most targeted effort in AFL-CIO history. The
program reached union members, members of
union households, retirees and members of Working
America, the AFL-CIO’s community affiliate for
workers who don’t have a union on the job. In all,
the AFL-CIO’s program reached out to more than 13
million union voters in 24 battleground states. The
AFL-CIO was engaged in 13 Senate races, 60 House
contests as well as the presidential race.
More than 250,000 AFL-CIO volunteers—
including BCTGM members—devoted themselves this
campaign to talk to co-workers, neighbors and other
union members about the stakes in this election.
BCTGM Local 42 (Atlanta) members from every
plant represented by the local union volunteered to
help with Labor 2008, according to Local 42 Business
Agent Isaac Gobern.
L. 42 (Atlanta) members were joined by Georgia State Senator Nan
Orrock outside the Kraft/Nabisco plant. Pictured here (left to right) is
Stew. Darrell Lane, L. 42 Bus. Agt. Isaac Gobern, Orrock, and L. 42 Fin.
Secy. Ruby Thomas.
Local 33G (Louisville,
Ky.) Vice Pres. J.D.
Howard (left) member
Tony Williams and
Pres. Roger Miller
distribute fliers
outside the General
Mills plant.
At the L. 42-represented Unilever plant in Atlanta, hundreds of campaign
fliers were distributed. Pictured here, from left, are Atlanta CLC members:
Kenny Bradford and Chrisangela Kitts, Chf. Stew. Troy Thomas, Leadman
Greg Smith, and member Fred Turner.
8
BCTGM News
Historic Victory for Obama
“This election had the spirit and cooperation of our full
membership and it was the member-to-member contact and
rank-and-file engagement that yielded success,” notes Gobern. “I
am so proud that Local 42 was able to contribute to the overall
labor effort and represent working people. The detail and effort
that went into Labor 2008—from national to state to CLC’s down
to individual local unions—was nothing short of incredible,”
adds Gobern.
Over the course of the campaign, volunteers made 76 million
phone calls, knocked on 14 million doors and delivered 29
million fliers at worksites.
“We must all continue to work hard until the laws are in place
that will ensure all working people their legitimate opportunity to
form a union and negotiate a high-quality collective bargaining
agreement with their employers,” Hurt concluded.
L. 33G (Louisville, Ky.) Chf. Steward Glenda
Clark (left) gives member Troy Breezy a
Barak Obama flier outside the plant gates.
L. 167G (Grand Forks, N.D.) member Mark
Froemke prepares for a Labor Walk.
L. 42 Stew. Darrell Lane (left) and L. 42 Fin. Secy. Ruby Thomas
(center) join Ga. State Senator Nan Orrock outside the Nabisco plant
to pass out campaign literature. Before running for office, Orrock was
an active BCTGM member employed at the Nabisco plant for 17 years.
From the left are L. 42 Stew. Darrell Lane, Atlanta CLC members Kenny
Bradford and Chrisangela Kitts, L. 42 Bus. Agt. Isaac Gobern, and
retired L. 42 Bus. Agt. Ronnie Jackson.
L. 57
(Columbus,
Ohio) member
Janie Griffin
participates in
a Labor 2008
phone bank.
Outside the Keebler plant, L. 42 Chf.
Stew. Tyrone Walker passes out fliers.
L. 464 (Hershey, Pa.) member Kris
Mills (right) takes a leaflet from L.
464 political coordinator Jake Long
outside the BCTGM-represented
Wilbur Chocolate plant in Lititiz, Pa.
November/December 2008
www.bctgm.org
9
“It’s good to have a presid
ent again.
The last couple of years
we haven’t had
one—or rather we have
one who decided
to give up after failing ba
dly. This has been
an especially painful vacu
um during the
collapse of the economy,
and in the face
of our diminished reputa
tion in the world.
There’s been no one to rea
ssure the country,
and no sign that a leader
was actually
tending to the national we
ll being.”
— New Republic editor
Congress
“It is the duty of the next
hcare
to write meaningful healt
coverage
legislation that provides
ve a duty
for all Americans. We ha
”
to enact it in law this year.
ittee
— Senate Finance Comm
or
pri
t.),
on
-M
(D
us
uc
Chairman Max Ba
y
ed
nn
Ke
Ted
to meeting with Senator
a
ve
mo
to
ed
(D-Mass.), who has vow
.
09
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in
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“Obama’s gift is that he
understood America’s great
secret, that Americans have
a deep and abiding need to
love one another, and that
we only lack the courage to
do so.”
t’s
—Adam Serwer at American Prospec
Tapped blog
10
BCTGM News

PAY EQUITY
a Focus for Canadian Labour
M
Unionized
women earn
93 percent
as much as
unionized
men, while
non union
women
earn just 75
percent as
much as non
union men.
November/December 2008
any people see the issue of economic
equality for women as rather outdated,
although statistics show there is cause
for concern. After many years of progress
through the 1970s and 1980s, the gender
wage gap in Canada has remained stuck
since the mid 1990s at one of the highest
levels in the advanced industrial world.
The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC)
wants to change that.
According to a recent CLC report
“Women in the Workplace: Still a Long
Way from Equality,” the pay gap has
grown rather than narrowed even as
women have become more highly
educated than men, and even as most
women have decided to have fewer
children, later in life. According to the
report, fully half of women aged 25 to 44
now have a post secondary qualification,
compared to 40 percent of men, and
women are participating in the paid
labour force at higher levels than ever
before. And yet, over the past decade the
pay gap has grown.
Provincial governments have taken
different approaches to this issue; some
provinces have pro-active pay equity laws
covering private sector workers (Ontario
and Quebec), while others only protect
public sector workers. Astonishingly,
British Columbia, Saskatchewan,
Newfoundland and Alberta have no pay
equity laws whatsoever.
According to the CLC’s report, unions
have made a significant difference to the
gender pay gap. Unionized women earn
93 percent as much as unionized men,
while non union women earn
www.bctgm.org
just 75 percent as much as non union
men. Unionization has improved wages
and benefits for many working women,
especially lower-paid women. However,
unionization rates for women in the
private sector are low, and lower than
among men (14 percent compared to 23
percent.) Organizing women into unions
and bargaining for greater equality must
be part of labour’s efforts to close the pay
and opportunity gap.
The OECD has found that the gender
pay gap is lowest in countries like France
and the Scandinavian countries which
provide affordable, quality public child
care services, and also the most familyfriendly workplaces. In Canada, Quebec
has led the way by not only launching
a major child care program, but also by
legislating a right to leaves from work to
take care of family responsibilities, and
greater rights for part-time and temporary
workers.
The CLC has made several
recommendations that would help ease
the pay gap. Public policies that could
help close the economic opportunity gap
between working women and men span
a wide range, from child care programs
and pay equity laws, to Employment
Insurance and public pension reforms,
to improved minimum employment
standards. The recent proposals of the
Arthurs Report on federal employment
standards included rights to unpaid leaves
from work, rights to vary hours to meet
family needs, equal treatment for parttime workers, new rights for temporary
workers, and higher minimum wages.
11
SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT
FOR THE BAKERY AND CONFECTIONERY UNION AND INDUSTRY
INTERNATIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS FUND
This is a summary of the annual report of the Bakery
and Confectionery Union and Industry International
Health Benefits Fund, EIN 53-0227042, Plan No. 501,
for the period January 1, 2007 through December
31, 2007. The annual report has been filed with the
Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S.
Department of Labor, as required under the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
The Joint Board of Trustees of the Bakery and
Confectionery Union and Industry International Health
Benefits Fund have committed themselves to pay all
non-insured claims incurred under the terms of the Plan.
Insurance Information
The plan has a contract with UNICARE Life and
Health Insurance Company, Inc. to pay Medicare Part
D RX claims incurred under the terms of the plan. The
total premiums paid for the plan year ending December
31, 2007 were $5,300,187.
Basic Financial Statement
The value of plan assets, after subtracting liabilities
of the plan, was $212,991,823 as of December 31, 2007,
compared to $202,142,481 as of January 1, 2007. During
the plan year the plan experienced an increase in its net
assets of $10,849,342. This increase includes unrealized
appreciation and depreciation in the value of plan
assets; that is, the difference between the value of the
plan’s assets at the end of the year and the value of the
assets at the beginning of the year or the cost of assets
acquired during the year. During the plan year, the plan
had total income of $52,821,321 including employer
contributions of $25,282,002, employee contributions
of $172,477, realized gain of $89,206 from the sale of
assets, and earnings from investments of $12,775,578.
Plan expenses were $41,971,979. These expenses
included $5,087,013 in administrative expenses and
$36,884,966 in benefits paid to participants and
beneficiaries. A total of 38,992 persons were participants
in or beneficiaries of the plan at the end of the year.
Your Rights To Additional Information
You have the right to receive a copy of the full
annual report, or any part thereof, on request. The items
listed below are included in that report:
1. an accountant’s report;
2. financial information and information on
payments to service providers;
12
3. assets held for investment; and
4. insurance information, including sales
commissions paid by insurance carriers.
To obtain a copy of the full annual report, or any
part thereof, write or call the office of Steven D. Brock
who is the Manager of Administrative Services, Bakery
and Confectionery Union and Industry International
Health Benefits and Pension Funds, 10401 Connecticut
Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3960, (301) 468-3750.
The charge to cover copying costs will be $10.00 for
the full annual report, or 25 cents per page for any part
thereof.
You also have the right to receive from the
plan administrator, on request and at no charge, a
statement of the assets and liabilities of the plan and
accompanying notes, or a statement of income and
expenses of the plan and accompanying notes, or
both. If you request a copy of the full annual report
from the plan administrator, these two statements
and accompanying notes will be included as part of
that report. The charge to cover copying costs given
above does not include a charge for the copying of
these portions of the report because these portions are
furnished without charge.
You also have the legally protected right to examine
the annual report at the main office of the plan at 10401
Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3960
and at the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington,
D.C., or to obtain a copy from the U.S. Department
of Labor upon payment of copying costs. Requests
to the Department should be addressed to: Public
Disclosure Room, Room N1513, Employee Benefits
Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200
Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210.
Additional Explanation
Additional Basic Financial Statement Information:
The retiree contributions of $14,388,690 were for
extended health insurance under the plan.
Información Adicional
Si tiene dificultad en la interpretación de este
Sumario del Reporte Anual, por favor escriba o llama
a la oficina de Steven D. Brock, que es el Director
de los Servicios Administrativos de el Bakery and
Confectionery Union and Industry International Health
Benefits and Pension Funds, 10401 Connecticut Avenue,
Kensington, Maryland 20895-3960, (301) 468-3750.
BCTGM News
SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT
FOR THE BAKERY AND CONFECTIONERY UNION AND INDUSTRY
INTERNATIONAL PENSION FUND
This is a summary of the annual report for the Bakery
and Confectionery Union and Industry International
Pension Fund, EIN 52-6118572, Plan No. 001, for the
period January 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007. The
annual report has been filed with the Employee Benefits
Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, as
required under the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Basic Financial Statement
Benefits under the plan are provided in whole
from trust funds. Plan expenses were $509,385,238.
These expenses included $28,697,272 in administrative
expenses and $480,687,966 in benefits paid to
participants and beneficiaries. A total of 119,246 persons
were participants in or beneficiaries of the plan at the end
of the plan year, although not all of these persons had yet
earned the right to receive benefits.
The value of plan assets, after subtracting liabilities
of the plan, was $6,449,805,912 as of December 31,
2007, compared to $6,190,535,955 as of January 1, 2007.
During the plan year the plan experienced an increase
in its net assets of $259,269,957. This increase includes
unrealized appreciation and depreciation in the value
of plan assets; that is, the difference between the value
of the plan’s assets at the end of the year and the value
of the assets at the beginning of the year or the cost
of assets acquired during the year. The plan had total
income of $657,030,979 including employer contributions
of $186,336,568 realized losses of ($30,678,902) from
the sale of assets, and earnings from investments of
$499,406,441.
Minimum Funding Standards
An actuary’s statement shows that enough money was
contributed to the plan to keep it funded in accordance
with the minimum funding standards of ERISA.
Your Rights To Additional Information
You have the right to receive a copy of the full annual
report, or any part thereof, on request. The items listed
below are included in that report:
1. an accountant’s report;
2. financial information and information on
payments to service providers;
3. assets held for investment;
4. information regarding any common or collective
trusts, pooled separate accounts, master trusts
or 103-12 investment entities in which the plan
participates; and
5. actuarial information regarding the funding of the
plan.
To obtain a copy of the full annual report, or any part
thereof, write or call the office of Steven D. Brock who
is the Manager of Administrative Services, Bakery and
Confectionery Union and Industry International Health
Benefits and Pension Funds, 10401 Connecticut Avenue,
Kensington MD 20895-3960, (301) 468-3750. The charge
November/December 2008
to cover the copying costs will be $15.00 for the full
annual report, or 25 cents per page for any part thereof.
You also have the right to receive from the plan
administrator, on request and at no charge, a statement
of the assets and liabilities of the plan and accompanying
notes, or a statement of income and expenses of the plan
and accompanying notes, or both. If you request a copy of
the full annual report from the plan administrator, these
two statements and accompanying notes will be included
as part of that report. The charge to cover copying costs
given above does not include a charge for the copying of
these portions of the report because these portions are
furnished without charge.
You also have the legally protected right to examine
the annual report at the main office of the plan, 10401
Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3960 and at
the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, D.C., or to
obtain a copy from the U.S. Department of Labor upon
payment of copying costs. Requests to the Department
should be addressed to: Public Disclosure Room, Room
N1513, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S.
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20210.
Additional Explanation
Additional Basic Financial Statement Information:
The plan had miscellaneous income of $1,966,872.
Información Adicional
Si tiene dificultad en la interpretación de este
Sumario del Reporte Anual, por favor escriba o llama a
la oficina de Steven D. Brock, que es el Director de los
Servicios Administrativos de el Bakery and Confectionery
Union and Industry International Health Benefits and
Pension Funds, Suite 210, 10401 Connecticut Avenue,
Kensington, Maryland 20895-3960, (301) 468-3750.
Funds’ Trustees
Following is a listing of the trustees currently
serving on the boards of each Fund:
Union Trustees—Frank Hurt (Chairman),
Intl. Pres.; David B. Durkee, Intl. Secy.-Treas.;
Steven V. Bertelli, Intl. Vice Pres.; Anthony
L. Johnson, Intl. Vice Pres.; Art Montminy,
Intl. Vice Pres.; Robert Oakley, Intl. Vice
Pres.; Randy D. Roark, Intl. Vice Pres.; Joseph
Thibodeau, Intl. Exec. Vice Pres.
Employer Trustees—Richard B. Cook
(Secretary) Vice Pres., Labor Relations,
Interstate Bakeries Corp.; Dan Craig, Vice
Pres., Labor & Employee Relations, Sara
Lee North America; Thomas G. Kirchner, Sr.
Director of Labor Relations, Kraft Foods;
Lou Minella, Vice Pres., Labor Relations,
Stroehmann Bakeries; John Wagner, Vice
Pres., Labor Relations, The Kroger Co.
www.bctgm.org
13
Stella D’Oro Strike
On August 14, 121 members of BCTGM Local 50 went on strike at the Stella
D’Oro bakery in Bronx, N.Y. The striking workers have received tremendous
support from labor, politicians and the community. A massive rally for the
Local 50 members
was recently held
outside the bakery
to further raise
awareness for the
workers’ struggle for
dignity and respect.
Pictured (left) are
some of the striking
workers and L. 50
Pres. Joyce Alston
(far left) thanking
the crowd for their
solidarity and
support.
Union Pride
BCTGM Local 351 (Albuquerque, N.M.) promoted the importance of
BCTGM-made goods and union jobs at the New Mexico State Fair. Sara
Lee Bakery donated bread and buns and Smith’s Food and Drug donated
decorated cakes for the local union to be given away to fair participants
in an hourly drawing. According to L. 351 Pres./Bus. Agt. Earl Reed, the
local union also passed out job applications and promoted the baking
industry as good employment option for young people. Pictured here is
Reed proudly displaying the Local 351-made goods.
14
Local 37 Educates
BCTGM Local 37 (Los Angeles) stewards pose for a photo following
a successful shop stewards training seminar conducted in city of
Commerce, Calif. in late September. The training was facilitated by L.
37 Pres. Danny Polanco, Secy.-Treas. Felipe Lopez, Bus. Agt. Robert
Tercero and Bus. Agt. Phil Gonzalez. The two-day workshop was
taught by Intl. Reps. Marco Mendoza and Blaine Williams.
BCTGM News
SAVE-MY-HOME
Hotline
Lots of people are facing hard
choices because of the uncertain
housing market, but union members
and their families have an advantage
that others don’t have. You have the
ear of knowledgeable, resourceful
financial experts at the Union Plus
Save My Home Hotline.
Call the Union Plus
Save My Home
Hotline at
1-866-490-5361
to arrange a confidential, free consultation
including a budget analysis and advice to get
you back on the road to financial recovery.
The HUD-certified credit counselor
can advise you on restructuring
your payments, and may be able to
find ways to free up enough money
in your budget to keep your home.
If you simply cannot make your
payments, your counselor may have
advice for working with the lender.
Advice designed especially for you
Fully-trained, HUD-certified counselors will discuss your individual situation
and offer advice and guidance that is personalized for your situation. Save My
Home Hotline housing counselors can:
• Provide a free budget and spending analysis to assess your current
financial situation
• Explain how best to work with your lender and understand all of the
options available to help you retain your home and prevent foreclosure.
• Protect you from future credit problems before you get too far behind on
mortgage payments.
• Provide a written plan of action you can follow.
• Offer referrals to other resources, including credit and bankruptcy
counseling, if appropriate.
It’s free and confidential
Counseling offered by the Save My Home Hotline is confidential and free.
The counselors at Money Management International (MMI), the nation’s
largest and most trusted full-service nonprofit credit counseling agency, are
ready to help. MMI and its family of Consumer Credit Counseling Services
agencies have helped consumers nationwide for more than 46 years by
providing high-quality, comprehensive credit counseling, and education and
debt management assistance.
In addition to telephone counseling, face-to-face counseling at more than
100 local offices in 22 states and the District of Columbia is also available.
Mortgage assistance grants
MMI has created a Preserving Homeownership And Savings Education
Strategies (PHASES) program through a $1 million grant from
HSBC, the provider of the Union Plus Credit Card. PHASES
grants can assist qualified homeowners in participating
states who are experiencing temporary
financial distress and who are past due
on one or two mortgage payments.
Grants are available to homeowners
in 15 states: Arizona, California,
Connecticut, Florida, Illinois,
Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan,
Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia.
Hotline counselors can determine if
you are eligible.
November/December 2008
www.bctgm.org
15
Printed in the U.S.A.